Zheng Qinwen came back from 0:5 down in the final set to defeat Keith and advance to the top 16 of the US Open women's singles

China News Service, New York, September 5th. The 2026 US Open Tennis Open will continue in New York on the 5th local time. Chinese player Zheng Qinwen staged a stunning comeback in the third round of the women's singles match. After trailing 0:5 in the final set, he won seven games in a row and eliminated the 2025 Australian Open women's singles champion, American player Keith, with a big score of 2:1. He reached the top 16 of the US Open women's singles for the third time in his career.

Zheng Qinwen and Keys have played against each other twice before, at the 2023 Women's Tennis Players Association (WTA) 500 Washington Station and the WTA 1000 Miami Station in March this year, with each side winning once.

After the game started, Case's strong forehand and fast pace continued to put pressure on Zheng Qinwen. With the advantage of two breaks, Case won the first set 6:1. In the second set, Zheng Qinwen remained patient, improved her first-serve success rate and made fewer mistakes. Although she missed the serve to win the set, she relied on her outstanding performance in the "tiebreak" to equalize the score at 7:6(3).

In the deciding set, Keys broke serve twice and took a 5:0 lead. Zheng Qinwen saved the match point in the seventh game and broke back. Then he broke two games in a row and won the set 7:5 with a big score of 2:1. After 2023 and 2024, he once again reached the top 16 of the US Open women's singles.

Zheng Qinwen said after the game that he was not used to his opponent's strong attack at first. Later, he adjusted his state in the second set and became more patient in the baseline stalemate. He also seized the opportunity of his opponent's increased mistakes in the final set and finally won.

This season, Zheng Qinwen, who has returned from injury, has experienced a period of sluggish form. In this regard, Zheng Qinwen said that the past few months have been extremely difficult, and it has been the most painful period since he turned into a professional player. “I never gave up the whole game and that’s the most positive thing right now.”

Next, Zheng Qinwen will compete with six-time Grand Slam women's singles champion and Polish star Sviatek for a spot in the top eight of the US Open women's singles.

In the second round of women's doubles, the combination of Chinese player Wang Xinyu and Japanese player Moeka Uchijima lost 1:2 to the local wild-card combination Montgomery/Kruger and missed the top 16. The Chinese combination Wang Xiyu/Xu Yifan lost 0:2 to top seeds Siniakova/Townsend, and also stopped in the second round of women's doubles. (over)